Venice's 'Indians' on front lines of clash over mascot monikers

Sports teams in Atlanta, Cleveland, Kansas City and Washington, D.C., among other cities, have faced criticism that their mascots are offensive to Native Americans.

Now Venice, a small town that takes big pride in its sports teams, is facing similar scrutiny over the team moniker "The Indians."

A local Native American advocacy leader has asked Venice High and Elementary Schools to change their mascot, saying the names and logos are discriminatory and violate School Board policy.

Sal Serbin, a 50-year-old Sarasota resident with Sioux lineage, made his case recently to the Sarasota County School Board. He said that the Venice schools' "cartoonish" mascots, Indian and Little Indians, respectively, offend and exploit Native American culture.

"There is no reason the 'Little Indians and Indian' mascots should not be changed," he wrote in a follow-up email to board members. "The schools get no extra benefit from having these mascots except to insult, mock and disgrace Native Americans."

His request came as a surprise to local attorney Jeff Boone, who played on Venice High's football, baseball and basketball teams before graduating in 1976.

"I can never ever think of a time that the name of the team caused people to belittle people of Native American descent," he said.

Boone, 56, a lifelong resident of Venice, said if the board began working to change the high school's mascot, it would draw a large amount of attention from the community. Those who have grown up locally take pride in their mascot.

"I can understand how a name like Redskins would be offensive to people of Native American descent, but I think this is just the opposite," Boone said. "It was a reference to the very brave and prestigious Calusa Indians who inhabited the area."

Serbin said the feathered war bonnets worn by the Venice schools' mascots don't accurately reflect the garb and regalia worn by Native Americans indigenous to Southwest Florida. Rather, the headdresses were historically worn by American Indians in the Great Plains region.

Not that Venice has many Native Americans. According to the census, Native Americans represent less than one-tenth of a percent of the city's population.

Serbin said that he was met with silence from the School Board after he spoke at the June 22 meeting, but that chairwoman Jane Goodwin called him a few days later about the issue.

"She mentioned that she could relate and that she was supportive," Serbin said. "I don't know if she's going to bring it to the School Board agenda."

When contacted by a reporter, Goodwin said it was too early to say if Serbin's request would be added to an agenda.

Serbin said he'd like the mascots changed to something other than a Native American. But he realizes it could take a few years and a good amount of money to rebrand the schools.

"I know it's nothing they can do tomorrow," he said. "Something else needs to be selected. I'd like the students to have some input in it."

But some longtime fans of the Venice Indians may never be ready to change the mascot, said Pete Dombroski, athletics director at Venice High School.

Dombroski said changing the mascot has never been proposed or discussed in the time since he became athletic director in 2010. But he added that he didn't believe "anyone at Venice High School or the School Board wants to offend anybody."

Still, "as a society it's hard for people to accept change," he said. "One hundred percent of the people will never be satisfied. Traditionalists will still want to support Venice Indians."

Indeed, it's a long-running tradition. Michelle Harm, a curator with Venice Museum and Archives, said yearbooks show the Indian mascot was used by Venice-Nokomis High as early as 1948.

But, Serbin contended, "that's a tradition of racism and it's something that should not be allowed to continue."

Dombroski said it will be the board's decision.

Serbin's request follows an intense national debate about whether the Washington Redskins should change that name in an effort to help end bigotry and racism in professional sports.

Serbin said he has protested the Venice Indians and the Sarasota Ringling Redskins Youth Football team before.

In 2012, he also protested against Ed Winddancer, a 55-year-old Englewood flute player who performed in front of the Venice Community Center for money while wearing American Indian regalia. Winddancer claimed Nanticoke and Cherokee descent and marketed his show, "Flight of the Red Hawk," as a Native American music and dance performance.

Serbin, who is the executive director of the American Indian Movement nationwide advocacy group, said the School Board is obligated to change the mascots based on the antidiscrimination guidelines of the Sarasota County School Board Policy Manual. The document states that slurs reflecting on an individual's race, ethnicity or national origin are harassment.

And such harassment, the manual goes on to state, "is a violation of state and federal laws and a breach of the School Board's Code of Student Conduct."